Cindy Briggs from the USA shared her favorite watercolor tips and tricks:

Here’s a Q&A with Cindy:

¿Por qué haces arte?

I come from a family of artists, so I’ve been fortunate to have creativity encouraged throughout my life. My inherent love of creativity keeps me engaged in exploring new ideas and expressing my point-of-view. Every day I get to paint gives me a sense of fulfillment and joy – sharing it with my students is a way to pass forward the legacy of creativity.

¿Cuánto tiempo llevas pintando?

Painting has always been a part of my life. I loved art in school and after working as an Art Director and starting a family, I chose to pursue painting full-time about 25 years ago.

¿Recibiste formación artística formal?

Yes – I studied Fine Art, Art History and Communication Arts at Brigham Young University. I’ve also taken workshops with many notable artists, including Charles Reid, Lori Putnam, Catherine Anderson, Frank Webb, Feeling Lin and Alvaro Castanet.

¿Eres artista profesional o aficionado?

Definitely a working artist and an international instructor. For instance, this week I’m leading 4 workshops with the Smithsonian Art Studios, a Portrait Workshop with ShopkeepArty based in London, plus I have a session with my mentoring group. I have over 1000 students in my online programs and I’ve got upcoming plein air workshops scheduled in France, Sicily and Belgium.

¿Qué te inspira?

I often find inspiration in the landscapes, architecture and people I encounter on my travels. Whether I’m in a medieval village, Zion National Park, or on my neighbor’s front porch, I listen to my heart as I meander and explore. The art books in my expanding collection inspire me, as does plein air painting with other artists. Taking workshops and visiting art museums and galleries expand my ideas of art.

¿Qué tipo de música escuchas mientras pintas?

I actually prefer silence or the subtle sounds of nature. If I do play any music, it would be soothing background instrumerntals, preferably piano or acoustic guitar.

¿Has tenido algún mentor?

Absolutely. I’ve been fortunate to have my aunt, Ellie Weakley, as my life and artistic mentor. Her influence as given me direction and courage to step up to many challenges in my career. She was a leading instructor at the Scottsdale Arts Center and the Denver School of Artists, and she also led numerous workshops – both in-studio and internationally. She painted with Richard Schmid for 10 years.

¿Pintas todos los días?

I wish! I paint as often as I can – this week I’ll have 6 days of painting. Life happens – there’s family, travel, the business side of art, etc. Even though I may be doing other things, I’m always contemplating my next project.

¿Pintas una pieza a la vez o trabajas en varias simultáneamente? 

I prefer one painting at a time so I am fully connected to that process.

¿Primero creas un boceto conceptual?

I will often create a preliminary sketch or study before creating a painting. I’ll start with a few thumbnails, then create a value study with my chosen design. I can also plan my color strategy for a stronger color statement.

¿Prefieres pintar en estudio o al aire libre?

I like both. Plein air is a wonderful challenge for capturing the life experience, using all of your senses to create your art and being all in. Working is the studio is comfortable and gives me more time to work on my ideas.

¿Cuántos colores básicos utilizas?

My palette has 18 select DANIEL SMITH watercolors that I’ve been using for about the past 10 years. I rarely change my colors due to my workshops. My palette works for my portraits, cityscapes and varied landscapes. But I do experiment with a wide selection of other DANIEL SMITH colors, depending on my projects.

¿Tubos, sartenes o palitos?

I prefer the tube paints for intensity of color and for being able to create a custom palette. Watch my video below to see how I fill my palette.

¿Cuándo sabes que tu obra está terminada?

Sometimes it’s because I’ve run out of time and the clock has saved me from going too far. Usually my art speaks to me and tells me to step back and look at it the next day. My favorite quote and great reminder is from Rex Brandt:  “A painting is usually finished before you are.”

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Únase a nosotros en línea cada semana a través de Zoom o Facebook para un Conversación íntima y personal con John Cogley (Daniel Smith, propietario y director ejecutivo) junto con artistas invitados de todo el mundo. Los jueves (2:00 p. m., hora del Pacífico), John y algunos de nuestros Embajadores de marca Destacamos un grupo de colores y respondemos a tus preguntas. Los viernes (10:30 a. m., hora del Pacífico), un artista invitado comparte una demostración con sus consejos y técnicas favoritas. Haz clic aquí para ver los enlaces de Zoom de la próxima semana..

Si lo prefiere, puede visitar nuestra Facebook página en showtime para ver en vivo. Las repeticiones se pueden ver en Facebook o YouTube. La traducción al español está disponible – selecciona el canal en español en Zoom.